Phew, what a fun evening in the Queen City. THE Charlotte Frelons and the Boston Celtics put on a show in the first game of a back-to-back. The Celtics came away victorious, 124-109, but the Hornets played with maximum effort, grit and tenacity to give the reigning world champion a fight to the end.

Things got a little out of hand in the final minutes with a few technical fouls and some questionable calls against the Hornets, leading to 22 free throw attempts in Boston’s fourth quarter.

I could very easily pick LaMelo Ball here, but we need to spread the love a little. I mean, where would the Hornets be without Tre Mann? Like, seriously? And who would have thought I would ever say that? Mann continues to be an important piece off the bench for Charles Lee, scoring 23 points on 10/18 shooting from the field tonight. He can make contested shots from the outside, but he’s also a pretty crafty finisher inside, which he exhibited on several occasions tonight.

Charlotte still has a lot to fix defensively, but the most staggering issue of the night was their inability to defend the paint. Boston is a team that generally likes to live and die with the three, so entering the night, they ranked 28th in paint points per game, averaging 37.6. Tonight they finished with 56. Now without Nick Richards (shoulder) for the second half certainly played a role, but they left those looks inside all night.

Deep shots were flying everywhere for both teams in the first half, with Charlotte and Boston combining for 54 attempts in the first half alone. The pace was very fast in the first 24 minutes, and with all the triples being thrown, it felt like the first to 200 would win the game. I’m joking, of course, but it was an offensive explosion in that first half.

Next up: Saturday vs. Celtics at 6 p.m. EST.

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